Bryan's Onstage Statement
During his Friday performance at Gillette Stadium, part of his With Heaven on Tour, Zach Bryan walked onstage wearing a shirt that read Free Palestine. The Grammy winner's action came at a venue owned by Robert Kraft, and it followed Kraft's efforts to pressure Ed Sheeran into removing Macklemore from his tour because of Macklemore's vocal support for Palestinians. Bryan has another show booked at the same Massachusetts stadium on Saturday night, and it is not yet known whether Kraft will take any steps in response.[S1]
Background: Sheeran, Macklemore, and Kraft
Ed Sheeran had been forced to cancel his Gillette Stadium shows the previous weekend because a nor'easter was approaching Boston, even though he had already yielded to Kraft's demands. Sheeran dropped Macklemore from his tour the month before, after criticism arose over Macklemore's onstage comments supporting Palestine. Sheeran, who chose to stay publicly neutral on the matter, later put out a statement describing the move as the promoter's decision, after Kraft brought together several tour venues to present him with an ultimatum. In the wake of that statement, other tour openers—Finneas, Aaron Rowe, and Lukas Graham—left the tour, as did Sheeran's backing band Beoga.[S1]
Macklemore's Free Palestine Tour
Macklemore announced his Free Palestine Tour last week, describing it as supporting the Palestinian people and movement, with dates from October 26 to October 30 in Dublin, Paris, and London. He later provided an update that the tour sold out immediately.[S1]
